Mepham came into Saturday’s showdown against Garden City with the stingiest defense on Long Island — allowing just 21 points all season, including three shutouts in its first four games.
But it didn’t take long to see that defense was no match for the Trojans in our GLI Game of the Week.
Garden City struck just two plays in when senior running back Anthony Asaro broke free for a 37-yard touchdown. It was the first of six scores in a commanding 44-7 win.
“That was the goal — to set the tone early,” said Asaro. “They haven’t seen an offense like Garden City yet, so we had to show them.”
“You could see they were less enthusiastic right after that play,” added captain Merit Ruckh.
Photos by Patrick Smith. Follow him on Instagram here.
The Trojans’ defense then took over, forcing turnovers on back-to-back Mepham drives. Asaro picked off a pass and returned it 25 yards for a touchdown, followed by Will Mattice’s 40-yard pick-six on the next possession.
Garden City led 20-0 after the first quarter.
“Our coach always tells us we have to hold ourselves to the standard that came before us when it comes to defense,” said Ruckh. “So we’re always thinking about the guys who used to wear this uniform and about playing as hard as we can.”
In the second quarter, the offense got rolling again. Ruckh broke loose for a 48-yard touchdown run, then hauled in a 33-yard scoring pass from quarterback Brayden Robertiello to make it 37-0 at halftime.
“We have so many guys who can do so many different things — it’s fun,” Ruckh said. “We’re such a versatile team.”
The victory marks Garden City’s 59th straight win, the second-longest active streak in the nation. But the players insist that number doesn’t matter.
“Not at all,” said Asaro. “The only thing that matters to us is the next game.”
PLAYERS OF THE GAME
Offense: Merit Ruckh (2 TDs — 1 rushing, 1 receiving)
Defense: The entire team (3 interceptions, 14 total yards allowed in the first half)
